Apparatus and method for manufacturing a shoe upper

ABSTRACT

The present invention is directed to an article of footwear and method for making the same, where the article of footwear has a minimal number of upper pieces. The method of the present invention is directed to a process for manufacturing an article of footwear having a single or multiple layer upper. Each layer of the upper according to the present invention is constructed of a one-piece upper material. At least the outer layer of the upper is molded utilizing an embossing tool according to the present invention, such that the desired appearance of the upper is embossed on the outer layer. Additionally, the improved shoe manufacturing process of the present invention may further comprise the step of decorating at least the outer layer of the upper, by screen printing, sublimation, large format ink jet printing, cold and hot peel transfers, fabric dyeing and/or multi-layered digital printing, allowing for multiple or different colorways to be created using a single base color upper material. The tool and process according to the present invention exhibit great flexibility with respect to aesthetics, construction and cost values, allowing for the creation of an unlimited variety of upper appearances with minimal retooling time and costs.

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/354,662 filed Jul. 16, 1999, U.S. Pat. No. 6,299,962 which is acontinuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/218,447filed Dec. 22, 1998, now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an apparatus for and method ofmanufacturing an article of footwear having a minimal number of upperpieces. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatusfor and method of manufacturing an athletic shoe, walking shoe, brownshoe, dress shoe or boot wherein the number of pieces required toconstruct the footwear upper is minimized in relation to knownmanufacturing processes.

2. Related Art

Shoe manufacture is a labor intensive process. The typical shoemanufacturing process encompasses the steps of cutting the uppermaterial, reducing the thickness of the joining edges (“skiving”),reducing the thickness of the upper pieces (“splitting”), cementing theinterlining to the upper pieces (“interlining”), forming the eyelets,stitching the upper pieces together, shaping the upper over a last(“lasting”) and cementing, molding or sewing the bottom of the shoes tothe upper (“bottoming”). Modern footwear designs, particularly athleticshoe designs, require numerous upper pieces and complicatedmanufacturing steps, leading to high labor costs. Additionally, a newpattern is required and the manufacturing process must be retooled forevery new design and style and for each desired shoe size.

In an effort to reduce labor costs, published PCT application WO90/03744, incorporated herein by reference, describes the use of heatembossing to minimize the number of manufacturing steps. The publishedapplication describes a process of manufacturing shoe components,including an entire one-piece upper, in which a multi-layered uppermaterial is heat embossed in a compression mold to reduce the thicknessof the material, to close or seal the edges, to incorporate a functionaldesign or pattern lines, and for strain management. After the embossingstep, the backsides of the embossed upper material are stitched togetherby means of a back strip and the upper material is lasted and bottomedto form the completed shoe. This process greatly reduces the cutting andstitching steps and can eliminate the skiving, splitting and interliningsteps of the typical shoe manufacturing process.

However, the shoe manufacturing process disclosed in the published PCTapplication does not greatly reduce the assembly time and costsassociated with creating new patterns and retooling the manufacturingprocess for new designs, new styles and different shoe sizes. Rather, anew pattern and a new embossing mold must be created for each change indesign and a separate embossing mold must be used for each desired shoesize. Similarly, numerous upper materials, in varying colors andtextures must be kept in inventory to accommodate desired changes instyle.

What is needed therefore is an improved labor-saving and time-savingmethod of shoe manufacture requiring less retooling time and reducedretooling costs. Further, what is needed is an improvedshoe-manufacturing method in which the required upper material inventoryis reduced. Still further, what is needed is a flexible, low costshoe-manufacturing method that can be used to form a wide variety ofshoe styles and designs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a process for manufacturing anarticle of footwear having a single or multi-layer upper, wherein thenumber of pieces required to construct the footwear upper is minimizedin relation to known manufacturing processes.

In one embodiment, the article of footwear manufactured has a threelayer upper, having a minimal number of upper pieces. The processcomprises the steps of molding a one-piece outer layer and a one-piecemiddle layer of the upper, with an embossing tool, described below, suchthat the desired appearance of the upper is embossed on the outer layerand such that the outer layer and middle layer are adhered to oneanother. Alternatively, the molding step can be omitted, if it is notdesired to emboss the outer and middle layers, and the outer layer andmiddle layer can be adhered to each other by a conventional adhesive.

The ends of this one-piece outer layer/middle layer combination are thenjoined and stitched, using methods known to those skilled in the art, toform a conventional upper shape. A back strip of material having a pulltab may be sewn to the inside and/or outside of the outer layer/middlelayer combination at the seam created by joining the ends.

A third, one-piece, inner layer is also formed into the shape of thefootwear upper by joining and stitching the ends of the inner layer,such that the inner layer has a single seam. The inner layer is theninserted within the outer layer/middle layer construction and the innerlayer is stitched to the middle layer to form the three layer upper ofthe present invention.

A combined tongue overlay and tongue pull tab, which may be molded inthe embossing tool, described below, such that the desired appearance ofthe upper is embossed on this piece, may be stitched onto the tonguearea of the three layer upper construction to further define the tongueshape and appearance. Eyelet stay reinforcers and lace loops may bedisposed around the tongue area of the upper, as is conventional in theart. Similarly, a heel counter and heel collar may be disposed in theheel area of the upper, as is conventional in the art, to providefurther comfort and support.

Finally, the three layer upper is lasted and the lasted upper iscemented, molded or sewn to the desired sole to complete the shoeconstruction. The upper can be decorated to create the final desiredcolor and appearance, using a process such as screen printing,sublimation, large format ink jet printing, cold and hot peel transfers,fabric dyeing or multi-layered digital printing, either before or afterthe molding step, as discussed below.

Similar multi-layer one-piece upper constructions can be manufacturedaccording to the present invention having two, four or more layers, aswould be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, by eitherremoving or adding one or more of the above mentioned layers.

Similarly, a single layer upper construction can be manufacturedaccording to the present invention, having a one-piece upper materialformed into the shape of the desired footwear upper. This material canbe molded, as discussed below, in an embossing tool such that thedesired appearance of the upper is embossed on the upper material. Theends of the upper material are stitched together using methods known inthe art, and a back strip of material having a pull tab may be sewn tothe inside and/or outside of the upper material at the seam where theends are stitched together. A combined tongue overlay and tongue pulltab, which may be molded in the embossing tool, described below, suchthat the desired appearance of the upper is embossed on this piece aswell, may be stitched onto the tongue area of the upper material tofurther define the tongue shape and appearance. Eyelet stay reinforcersand lace loops may be disposed around the tongue area of the uppermaterial, as is conventional in the art. Similarly, a heel counter andheel collar may be disposed at the heel area of the upper material, asis conventional in the art, to provide further heel comfort and support.Finally, the upper material is lasted and the lasted upper is cemented,molded or sewn to the desired sole to complete the shoe construction.The upper material can be decorated to create the final desired colorand appearance, using a process such as screen printing, sublimation,large format ink jet printing, cold and hot peel transfers, fabricdyeing or multi-layered digital printing, either before or after themolding step, as discussed below.

The present invention is also directed to an embossing tool formanufacturing a one-piece upper. The embossing tool can be utilized formore than one shoe size, model, design or style, and comprises anembossing mold and removable texture plates disposed in the embossingmold. Additionally the embossing mold may also comprise a combination ofwhole or partial plates, used for forming an upper, that can beinterchanged within the embossing mold and/or within themselves. Forexample, an entire upper plate can be removed from the embossing moldand can be replaced with another upper plate design option. These upperplate design options can also have interchangeable inserts or textureplates for additional flexibility in the process. By interchanging theremovable, texture plates disposed in the upper plate of the embossingmold, different textures and appearances for the upper can be createdusing the same basic embossing mold.

The present invention is also directed to a process for molding aone-piece upper material, utilizing the embossing tool according to thepresent invention. This improved manufacturing process includes the stepof molding the upper material with an embossing tool having removabletexture plates, such that the desired appearance of the upper isembossed on an upper material. The improved shoe manufacturing processaccording to the present invention greatly reduces the retooling timeand costs associated with changes in the design and style of the upper.By interchanging the removable texture plates disposed in the embossingmold, different textures and appearances can be created using the samebasic upper pattern, thereby, reducing retooling time and costs.

Additionally, the improved shoe manufacturing process of the presentinvention includes the step of decorating the upper material with thedesired colorway onto a base color upper material before or after themolding step. The art of decorating the upper material includes, but isnot limited to, screen printing, sublimation, large format ink jetprinting, cold and hot peel transfers, fabric dyeing and multi-layeredtreatment, for example digital printing different layers of images ontop of one another. Thus, the improved shoe manufacturing processaccording to the present invention allows for multiple or differentcolorways to be created with a single base color upper material,minimizing the need to order and have in inventory materials ofdifferent colors and reducing retooling time and costs, such thatchanges in decorative appearance can be quickly generated.

Therefore, the tool and process according to the present inventionexhibit great flexibility with respect to aesthetics, construction andcost values, allowing for the creation of an unlimited variety of upperappearances in a number of sizes with minimal retooling time and costs.Additionally, the present invention reduces the costs and timeassociated with the shoe manufacturing process by reducing the number ofupper pieces required and the amount of manual labor involved in theretooling process. By increasing the design flexibility of themanufacturing process, the present invention reduces the number ofmanufacturing steps and, thereby, reduces the amount of labor involved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention will beapparent from the following, more particular description of a preferredembodiment of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings.

FIG. 1A is a plan view of a texture insert according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 1B is a plan view of a lower half of an embossing mold according tothe present invention having a first set of removable texture inserts.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the lower half of the embossing mold accordingto the present invention having a second set of removable textureinserts.

FIG. 3 is an elevational view of an embossing mold according to thepresent invention.

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the compression molding apparatus ofthe present invention, including an embossing mold according to thepresent invention.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of an upper material decorated according to thepresent invention.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of an upper material decorated, molded and cutaccording to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is rear view of a completed shoe upper according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a side view of a completed shoe upper according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of a shoe madeaccording to the present invention.

FIG. 9A is a plan view of inner layer material of the shoe of FIG. 9according to the present invention.

FIG. 9B is plan view of a middle layer material of the shoe of FIG. 9according to the present invention.

FIG. 9C is plan view of an outer layer material of the shoe of FIG. 9according to the present invention.

FIG. 9D is a plan view of a strobel sock material of the shoe of FIG. 9according to the present invention.

FIG. 9E is a plan view of a heel collar foam of the shoe of FIG. 9according to the present invention.

FIG. 9F is a plan view of a combined tongue overlay and tongue pull-tabof the shoe of FIG. 9 according to the present invention.

FIG. 9G is a plan view of a back strip with pull tab of the shoe of FIG.9 according to the present invention.

FIG. 9H is a plan view of an eyelet stay reinforcer of the shoe of FIG.9 according to the present invention.

FIG. 9I is a plan view of a lace loop of the shoe of FIG. 9 according tothe present invention.

FIG. 10A is a side view of the shoe of FIG. 9 according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 10B is a plan view of the shoe of FIG. 9 according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 10C is a front view of the shoe of FIG. 9 according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 10D is a rear view of the shoe of FIG. 9 according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 11 is a plan view of a lower half of an embossing mold according toan alternate embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The tool and process of the present invention minimize the amount ofupper pieces required to assemble an upper for an article of footwearand exhibit great flexibility with respect to aesthetics, construction,and cost values.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is now described withreference to the figures where like reference numbers indicate identicalor functionally similar elements. Also in the figures, the left mostdigit of each reference number corresponds to the figure in which thereference number is first used. While specific configurations andarrangements are discussed, it should be understood that this is donefor illustrative purposes only. A person skilled in the relevant artwill recognize that other configurations and arrangements can be usedwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It will beapparent to a person skilled in the relevant art that this invention canalso be employed in a variety of other devices and applications.

While the following disclosure is directed to the manufacture of anathletic shoe, the disclosed embodiments are presented by way ofexample, and not limitation, and it will be apparent to persons skilledin the relevant art that various changes in form and detail can be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.For example, the tool and process of the present invention can beutilized in the manufacture of uppers for various types of shoes, suchas athletic shoes, walking shoes, brown shoes, dress shoes or boots.Depending on the desired effect, the tool and manufacturing process ofthe present invention can be used to mold a stand-alone component forshoe construction, such as a one-piece upper material, or a componentthat can be combined with a virtually unlimited variety of additionalmaterials to compliment a shoe construction, such as a combined tongueoverlay and tongue pull-tab, as discussed below.

The following disclosure is directed to the manufacture of an athleticshoe having a minimal number of upper pieces, thereby simplifying themanufacturing process. As discussed below, the present invention can beused to construct a single layer or multi-layered upper for an athleticshoe requiring the addition of only a minimal number of additionalpieces, such as a backstrap (to connect the ends of the one-piece upperaround the back of the heel of the shoe), a tongue overlay, and a sole,to construct an entire athletic shoe.

The manufacturing process according to the present invention isinitiated with the generation of a desired upper pattern shape. Thedesired upper pattern shape can be created and manipulated using a CAD(computer aided design) system, or by other methods apparent to oneskilled in the art of shoe design. The upper design is then used to makethe embossing mold. In one embodiment, the upper design is fed into aCNC (computer numeric controlled) machine. The CNC machining processproduces a tool 100 having an embossing mold 110, as shown in FIGS. 1Band 3. In the preferred embodiment, embossing mold 110 is made ofaluminum. However, embossing mold 110 may be made of other materials,such as brass and magnesium or other heat and pressure tolerant typematerials, as would be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art.

Tool 100, which is used for manufacturing an upper of an article offootwear, for example an athletic shoe, according to the presentinvention comprises embossing mold 110 and a plurality of textureinserts 120 (as shown in FIG. 1A). Embossing mold 110 is designed tohouse a variety of removable and interchangeable texture inserts 120. Inthe preferred embodiment, texture inserts 120 are made of aluminum.However, texture inserts 120 may be made of other materials, such asbrass and magnesium or other heat and pressure tolerant type materials,as would be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art.

A different embossing mold 110 is required for each foot (i.e., left andright). However, if the medial and lateral sides of the upper patternare identical, such that the upper pattern is symmetrical, the sameembossing mold 110 can be used for both the right and left foot shoes.Alternatively, two embossing molds 110 can be hinged together to form aclam shell mold arrangement in which the hinged embossing molds 110 canmold two uppers (i.e. for the right and left foot shoes) simultaneously.In this embodiment, a separator material, such as a sheet of aluminum,brass, magnesium, or other heat and pressure tolerant material, as wouldbe apparent to one skilled in the relevant art, preferably is placedbetween the two pieces of upper material when the mold halves areclosed, such that the right and left uppers are not molded to each otherduring the molding process. The geometry shown in FIGS. 1B and 2 willmake a one-piece upper for a left shoe. As such, a mirror image of themold shown in FIGS. 1B and 2 would be used to mold the upper for a rightshoe.

Embossing mold 110 can be used as a stand-alone tool for molding uppermaterials or it can incorporate desired texture inserts 120 to achievean endless variety of molding effects. Additionally, the embossing moldmay also comprise a combination of whole or partial upper plates thatcan be interchanged within the embossing mold and/or within themselves.For example, an entire upper plate can be removed from the embossingmold and replaced with another upper plate design option. These upperplate design options can also have interchangeable texture plates foradditional flexibility in the process.

Individual texture inserts 120 are CNC machined to fit into desiredlocations within embossing mold 110. Mold 110 and texture inserts 120can also be made using optional techniques such as photo etching orengraving, as would be apparent to one skilled in the art. FIG. 1B showsan empty embossing mold 110, that is an embossing mold 110 without anytexture inserts 120 fitted within mold 110. As can be seen in FIG. 1B,embossing mold 110 is divided into a number of sections by pattern lines140. As shown in FIG. 2, to achieve a desired style or textureappearance, texture inserts 120 are fit together like jigsaw puzzlepieces within the pattern lines 140 on embossing mold 110. Thus,embossing mold 110 and pattern lines 140 set out the basic pattern shapefor the upper, and texture inserts 120 can be rearranged within patternlines 140 of embossing mold 110 to create an unlimited variety of moldedupper appearances. In one embodiment, texture inserts 120 are treatedwith textured surfaces to serve as embossing or debossing aids.

Embossing mold 110 is equipped with location pins 130 for positive andrepeatable positioning of location holes 510 of upper material 500 (asshown in FIG. 5) to tool 100. Location pins 130 also serve asregistration marks for single or multiple silk screening operations,discussed below, if applicable.

FIG. 3 shows an elevational view of embossing mold 110. As shown in FIG.3, embossing mold 110 can be secured to tool 100 through screws 310 orthe like. Alternative methods for securing embossing mold 110 andtexture inserts 120 to tool 100 could also be employed, as would beapparent to those skilled in the relevant art.

Before or after molding upper material 500 with tool 100, color can beadded to the upper manufacturing process of the present invention byscreen printing upper material 500. FIG. 5 shows upper material 500 thathas been screen printed with color prior to molding. The screen printingprocess allows for unlimited colorways and aesthetic possibilities to becreated with a single base color upper material 500, eliminating theneed to order and have in inventory materials of different colors. Forexample, the same white colored upper material 500 can be screen printedto produce a number of different appearances. For additionalappearances, textured inks can be used in the screen printing process.The art of decorating the upper material is not limited to the screenprinting process but can also include other decoration treatments,including but not limited to, sublimation, large format ink jetprinting, cold and hot peel transfers, fabric dyeing, multi-layeredtreatment, for example, printing different layers of images on top ofone another though a digital printing process, and other treatmentsknown to those skilled in the art.

Selected upper material 500 can be molded with a desired texture andshape either by a heat emboss/compression molding (thermal compressionmolding) or RF welding, as discussed below. Alternatively, an ultrasonicwelding process or other molding technique, known by those skilled inthe art, could also be utilized. For example, in an ultrasonic weldingprocess, ultrasonic vibrations create friction at the welding contactpoint and melt the materials together giving an end result similar tothe RF welding described below. An advantage to the ultrasonic weldingprocess would be that it lends itself to an embodiment of the inventionin which upper material 500 could be roll fed, for example using athermal calendaring process, through a modified version of embossingmold 110, allowing for improved mass production qualities. Embossingmold 110 would need to be modified to be useable on a roll feedmechanism, as would be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art. Inanother embodiment of the present invention, a vacuum assisted formingmethod could be used. For example, embossing mold 110 could beconstructed with a plurality of holes drilled through mold 110. Then,material 500 is placed into the mold and a vacuum is used to suck airout of mold 110 through the holes drilled in mold 110, forcing material500 to take the shape dictated by mold 110. In this embodiment, uppermaterial 500 is preferably a thermoformable material. Alternatively, aporous material can be used in the vacuum assisted forming method,thereby obviating the need to drill holes in embossing mold 110.

A compression mold apparatus for implementing the present invention isshown in FIG. 4. Once embossing mold 110 has been fitted (if applicable)with textured inserts 120, the precut, preshrunk or stable uppermaterial 500 is positioned, with the desired face down, onto locationpins 130. Upper material 500 can be single or multiple layers andconstructed of various materials such as leather, nylon, syntheticpolymer products such as polyurethane, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), PETG,ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), polyolefins with EVA content, polyurethanefoam, styrenes, and various knit and woven fabrics or other materialsused in the shoe construction and known to those skilled in the art. Inthe heat emboss/compression molding process, a silicone sheet (optional;not shown) is placed over the back (side facing operator) of the uppermaterial 500 in embossing mold package 440. Embossing mold package 440consists of embossing mold 110, selected texture inserts 120 and anupper material 500. A top half mold 410, as shown in FIG. 4, having atextured or untextured surface, may also be included in embossing moldpackage 440, but is not required. Alternative embodiments of embossingmold package 440 may also be used. For example, the positioning ofembossing mold 110 and mold 410 may be reversed such that the upper halfof the embossing mold package comprises embossing mold 110 and the lowerhalf of the embossing mold package comprises mold 410. Also, embossingmold package 440 may be utilized with an upper half or a bottom halfalone, as is described below. Embossing mold package 440 is placed ontopress 400 between a heated top plate 420 and a heated bottom plate 430.Press 400 is comprised of hydraulic cylinders 450 and 460 that drive topplate 420 and bottom plate 430 against embossing mold package 440,disposed in between. Plates 420 and 430 contain heating elements 480 and490 which heat plates 420 and 430 and, in turn, embossing mold package440 to the desired temperature. Heat and pressure settings are variablesin this process and are set as needed for each material/fabricrequirement, as would be apparent to one skilled in the art.

A typical example of the manufacturing process according to the presentinvention utilizing heat emboss/compression molding wherein embossingmold package 440 does not include a top half mold 410 is as follows: aproduction-standard cycle time (load-press-unload), dependent on thematerial chosen, wherein five to seven metric tons of pressure areapplied during each cycle; top plate 420 and bottom plate 430 of press400 are heated to approximately 250 to 335° F.; embossing mold packageis 440 removed from heated press plates 420 and 430 and the demolding ofupper material 500 is accomplished while upper material 500, pressplates 420 and 430 and embossing mold 110 are hot; the cycle isrepeatable and maintains press heat. Pressurized cooling may be requiredto maintain production-standard cycle times.

In the RF welding process, embossing mold package 440 is preparedidentical to that disclosed above for heat emboss/compression molding,except that a Teflon sheet (not shown) or other non-polar material maybe added on top of or in place of the optional silicone sheet discussedabove to cover upper material 500 in embossing mold package 440. Anexemplary manufacturing process according to the present inventionutilizing RF welding wherein mold package 440 does not include a tophalf mold 410 is as follows: a one minute cycle (load-weld-unload),having a preseal time of two seconds, a seal time of 20-30 seconds and acool time of 20-30 seconds on a 20-30 KW RF welding machine. Moldingtime is decreased with the use of a turntable or sliding feed table. Theactual KW power required is dependent on the area (in²) of the toolsurface and the type of material being welded and other factors known tothose skilled in the art. If RF welding is used, upper material 500 ispreferably a dipole polymer material and embossing mold 110 and textureinserts 120 are preferably photo etched.

After the molding process is complete, upper material 500 is now readyto be die cut to the desired shape, as shown in FIG. 6 and incorporatedinto the actual upper construction. Alternative cutting techniques canalso be used, such as laser cutting, water jet cutting, andreciprocating knife cutting, as would be apparent to those of skill inthe relevant art.

In one embodiment, a one layer upper can be constructed according to thepresent invention. To form upper material 500 into the shape of a shoeupper 700, ends 610 and 620 of upper material 500 are stitched togetherusing methods known in the art, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. A back strip710 of material may be sewn to the inside and/or outside of uppermaterial 500 at the seam where ends 610 and 620 are stitched together toform upper 700. Alternatively, if back strip 710 is not used, ends 610and 620 of upper material 500 can be attached by tape sealing or byoverlapping ends 610 and 620 and stitching, or other methods known tothose skilled in the art. A tongue 810 can be sewn to upper material500, as shown in FIG. 8. Alternatively, upper material 500 can bedesigned to include a bellows tongue arrangement (not shown for aone-layer construction), as described below with respect to FIG. 9. Acombined tongue overlay and tongue pull-tab 950 can be sewn to uppermaterial 500, as shown in FIG. 9. The design comprising this bellowstongue arrangement further reduces the number of upper pieces required.FIG. 11 shows an alternate embodiment of an embossing mold 1100, that isconstructed as a unitary mold, without the use of texture inserts 120.Embossing mold 1100, discussed below, can be used to mold the embodimentof upper material 500 having a bellows tongue arrangement. Additionally,eyelets 820 may be disposed on upper material 500.

In the final step, upper 700 is shaped over a last (not shown) and upper700, interlining 720 and a strobel sock (not shown) are stitchedtogether. To add further flexibility, the amount of upper 700 that wrapsaround the bottom of the lasting board can be varied, so that the sameembossing mold 110 can be used to make shoes of differing sizes. Forexample, an embossing mold 110 designed to produce a size 9 shoe can beused to manufacture a size 8½, 9 or 9½ shoe. Thus, using the apparatusof the present invention, an entire shoe can be constructed with aminimum number of parts and reduced labor.

In a second embodiment, only ten pattern pieces, shown in FIGS. 9A-9I,are used to make up the construction of a shoe according to the presentinvention, having a three-layer upper, as shown in FIG. 9. This is farless than the typical number of pattern pieces required for theconstruction of a conventional athletic shoe (typically around 20 to 30pieces) and equal to or less than the number of pattern pieces typicallyrequired for a dress or brown shoe.

The shoe construction of the second embodiment of the present invention,shown in FIGS. 9 and 10A-10D, consists of a three layer upper, having aone-piece inner layer 900, a one-piece middle layer 910 and one-pieceouter layer 920. Inner layer 900, as shown in FIG. 9A, consists of a“seamless” bootie, having only two seams, one created by stitchingtogether ends 902 and 904 of inner layer 900, and a second seam createdduring the lasting process, by the joining of strobel sock 930 to innerlayer 900, as discussed below. If desired, the first seam of inner layer900 can be positioned within the interior of the shoe, so that it isunexposed or unnoticeable to the wearer, creating the appearance of a“seamless” bootie. Inner layer 900 can be made of a triple meshmaterial, having moisture management characteristics, to wick awaymoisture from the foot, or other material known to those skilled in therelevant art, especially those materials known to be advantageous whenused next to the skin of the wearer's foot.

Inner layer 900 can also be provided with a bellows tongue arrangement906, to further limit the number of pieces required, which, as in theembodiment shown in FIGS. 9, 10B and 10C, may be visible on the vamp ofthe shoe on either side of the tongue area of the shoe, such thatseamless inner layer 900 continues around the top of the shoe, closingthe vamp and tongue area off to prevent dirt from reaching inside theshoe. In particular, in this embodiment bellows tongue arrangement 906has gussets 908 formed by the folding of inner layer 900, which arecreated without the need for additional stitching. This constructioneliminates the need to sew a tongue onto the finished upper, asdiscussed with respect to the one layer upper embodiment above. Ifdesired, the“seamless” bootie arrangement of inner layer 900 and inparticular, the bellows tongue arrangement 906, can provide waterresistant qualities for the article of footwear, by wrapping the entirefoot in continuous one-piece inner layer 900. Additionally, the portionsof inner layer 900 which are visible on the exterior of the shoe (forexample, around the vamp and tongue areas of the shoe) can be treatedwith a water-proofing substance to further increase the water resistantqualities of the shoe.

Middle layer 910 and outer layer 920, as shown in FIGS. 9B and 9C, canbe made using the same pattern piece, such that they are identical andoverlap when placed one on top of the other. This construction allowsmiddle layer 910 and outer layer 920 to be adhered together, either byan adhesive, such as glue, cement, a thermo-set adhesive, or otheradhesives in the thermoplastic family; by a lamination technique knownto those skilled in the relevant art, such as flame lamination; bystitching; or by compression sealing during the molding process. In oneembodiment, middle layer 910 is made from a lofting material which hasan anti-microbial treatment applied to it. Outer layer 920, as discussedabove, can be any of a variety of materials, depending on the desiredappearance and use. For additional heel support, a conventional heelcounter (not shown), made from a rigid or semi-rigid material, can bedisposed between inner layer 900 and middle layer 910. The heel countermay be made from a hard plastic, although it would be apparent to oneskilled in the relevant art that a variety of materials could be used toform the heel counter. Additionally, heel collar 940, as shown in FIG.9E, can be disposed between inner layer 900 and middle layer 910 aroundthe heel of the shoe, to enhance comfort for the wearer. Alternatively,the heel counter may be disposed externally (on the outside of outerlayer 920). In a two-layer embodiment, both the heel counter and heelcollar may be disposed between inner layer 900 and outer layer 920. Theadvantages to the various placements of the heel counter would beapparent to one skilled in the relevant art.

Outer layer 920 and middle layer 910 are molded with the desiredtexture, using the embossing tool of the present invention, and therebyadhered to one another, as discussed above. Alternatively, outer layer920 and middle layer 910 can be adhered to each other, using adhesivesknown to those skilled in the relevant art, prior to the molding step.Thus, in the three-layer construction, it is possible to adhere outerlayer 920 and middle layer 910 and emboss simultaneously; it is possibleto adhere outer layer 920 and middle layer 910 and then to emboss; or itis also possible to adhere outer layer 920 and middle layer 910 but notto emboss at all. Similarly, it is possible to use the molding step inthe three layer construction for the joint purpose of adhering outerlayer 920 and middle layer 910 and embossing, the sole purpose ofadhering outer layer 920 and middle layer 910 (with no particularembossing pattern resulting), and the sole purpose of embossing only(i.e. after adhering has taken place). Then outer layer 920 and middlelayer 910 are formed into the shape of a shoe upper 1000, as shown inFIGS. 10A-10D. In particular, ends 922 and 924 of outer layer 920 andends 912 and 914 of middle layer 910 are stitched together using methodsknown in the art, as shown in FIG. 10. A back strip 960, as shown inFIG. 9G, of material having a pull tab, may be sewn to the outside ofouter layer 920 or inside of middle layer 910 at the seam where ends912, 914, 922, and 924 are stitched together to form upper 1000, asshown in FIG. 10D. Alternatively, if back strip 960 is not used ends912, 914, 922 and 924 can be attached by tape sealing or by overlappingand stitching, or other methods known to those skilled in the relevantart. Inner layer 900 is then attached to the outer layer 920/middlelayer 910 combination by stitching 1020, so that inner layer 900, middlelayer 910 and outer layer 920 form the three layer upper embodiment ofthe present invention. In an alternate two layer embodiment, inner layer900 is attached to outer layer 920. As discussed above, outer layer 920and middle layer 910 can be embossed prior to forming the three layerupper to create the desired textured appearance and decorated using oneof the aforementioned decorative processes. Additionally, in oneembodiment, a combined tongue overlay and tongue pull-tab 950, as shownin FIG. 9F, can be molded in the embossing mold of the presentinvention, as discussed above, with a texture similar to outer layer920. Embossing mold 1100, as shown in FIG. 11, is constructed so thatmiddle layer 910, outer layer 920 and combined tongue overlay and tonguepull-tab 950 can be molded at the same time, by the same embossing mold.Combined tongue overlay and tongue pull-tab 950 is then stitched ontothe end of bellows tongue 906, as shown in FIGS. 10B and 10C, to furtherdefine the shape and appearance of the tongue area of the shoe. Eyeletstay reinforcers 970, as shown in FIG. 9H, are disposed on either sideof bellows tongue 906, as shown in FIG. 10C. Lace loops 980, as shown inFIG. 91, are disposed in each eyelet 972 of eyelet stay reinforcers 970,as shown in FIG. 10C. In the final step, the three layer upper is shapedover a last (not shown) and upper 1000 and strobel sock 930 (shown inFIG. 9D) are stitched together. To add further flexibility to the shoemanufacturing process according to the present invention, the amount ofupper 1000 that wraps around the bottom of the lasting board can bevaried, so that the same embossing mold 1100 can be used to make shoesof differing sizes. For example, an embossing mold 1100 designed toproduce a size 9 shoe can be used to manufacture a size 8½, 9 or 9½shoe. While slip lasting is described above, board lasting, combinationlasting, or string lasting could be used as well, depending on thedesired stability and flexibility of the shoe, as would be apparent toone skilled in the relevant art. The lasted upper is cemented, molded orsewn to the desired sole to complete the shoe construction.

While a number of embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed above, it should be understood that they have been presentedby way of example, and not limitation. It will be apparent to personsskilled in the relevant art that various changes in form and detail canbe made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention. Thus the present invention should not be limited by any ofthe above-described exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only inaccordance with the following claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A tool for manufacturing an upper for a shoecomprising: an embossing mold; and a plurality of removable textureinserts disposed in said embossing mold, wherein said texture insertsserve as embossing aids.
 2. A tool according to claim 1, wherein saidtool is for manufacturing a one-piece upper.
 3. A tool according toclaim 1, wherein said tool is for manufacturing an upper component.
 4. Atool according to claim 1, wherein said embossing mold is made ofaluminum.
 5. A tool according to claim 1, wherein said removable textureinserts are made of aluminum.
 6. A tool according to claim 1, whereinsaid removable texture inserts are formed having textured surfaces andare interchangeable such that the molded appearance of said upper can bevaried.
 7. A tool according to claim 1, further comprising a pluralityof location pins disposed on said embossing mold for aligning an uppermaterial to said embossing mold.
 8. A tool according to claim 1, whereinsaid tool can be used to emboss a screen printed upper material.
 9. Atool according to claim 1, further comprising: an upper half moldremovably disposed on top of said embossing mold; wherein said uppermaterial can be disposed between said upper half mold and said embossingmold.
 10. A method for manufacture of a shoe upper comprising: moldingmaterial with a tool comprising an embossing mold and a plurality ofremovable texture inserts, such that the desired appearance of said shoeupper is embossed on said material; joining the ends of said material toform said shoe upper.
 11. A method according to claim 10, furthercomprising the step of screen printing color onto said material.
 12. Amethod according to claim 11, wherein said screen printing step isperformed prior to said molding step.
 13. A method according to claim10, wherein said molding step comprises heat emboss/compression molding.14. A method according to claim 10, wherein said molding step comprisesRF welding.